One of the original high-lycopene tomatoes. Early Hi-Crimson has a beautiful crimson red interior and excellent, sweet taste.
Its medium fruits range in size from 70 g to 150g (2oz to 5oz) and grow on manageable 3 foot plants. Early Hi-Crimson is early, but also produced up until the end of summer. When you cut into this tomato, its deep red colour jumps out at you. An easy low maintenance tomato.
A bit of history:
The High Crimson line of tomatoes (which includes Early Hi-Crimson) were the first ‘og’ tomatoes introduced commercially in the 1950s and 1960s (see the Introduction in Old Gold/High Crimson). Canadian researchers isolated the ‘og’ gene (old gold/high crimson gene) in a tomato from the Philippines and then developed the High Crimson line of tomato.
Having the ‘og’ gene means High Crimson cultivars have higher levels of lycopene – ranging from 87 to 149 mg/kg-1 (Ilahy et al 2018; Mohr 1979)–compared to standard red tomatoes (mean 30 mg/kg-1).
Our seedstock for ‘Early Hi-Crimson ‘comes from the Seed Savers Exchange (SSE). ‘Early Hi-Crimson’ was donated to the SSE by legendary Montana seedsman Ken Fisher. Ken had been growing and stewarding this variety for many years; here is his description of Early Hi-Crimson in the 1987 Fisher’s Seeds catalogue:
Early Hi-Crimson – 65 days. New race of tomatoes, double the red color of ordinary tomatoes especially when ripened in cool weather, large 3-3.5 in. fruits on semi-determinant plants.
Not only does this variety have the high-lycopene trait created by the Canadian breeding program, but it is also a Ken Fisher selection of High Crimson. Over the years, Ken would have selected for traits that thrived in his harsh, Zone 4 Belgrade, Montana environment, making High Crimson even better. We assume Early Hi-Crimson is Ken’s name for his selection of High Crimson and it recognizes his stewardship.
How to Plant: Start seeds indoors 6-8 weeks before the last frost. Plant seed 5mm (¼ inch) deep. Keep moist. When true leaves appear, transplant to a larger container if needed. Transplant outside after the danger of frost has passed/later spring.
